Rosemary Alive?
by Cararox
Summary: Finished! Jonas discovers a woman, Rosemary, that might have been the Giver's daughter. Is it? ...rn How could Rosemary, who had seemingly been released years ago, have escaped from the Community? If she is the Giver's true daughter, what will Jonas do?
1. Default Chapter

Prologue: (leaving where book left off)...

Jonas clutched Gabe tightly to his chest and bit his lip to remain conscious as the sled glided down the hill. It was snowing heavily and Jonas could barely see the specks of light that twinkled out between the flakes. Jonas cried out in a thin weathered voice.

"Help," Jonas could taste the blood on his lips as it dribbled down his chin and stained the snow.

Laughter and _music_ swelled all around Jonas, but it abruptly ceased as a whispering crowd gathered around to see him. The only noise left now was the cold blistering wind pelting snow across his frozen face.

"Help me!" cried Jonas, and before he could say anything more, he dropped in the snow. His world went black into nothingness.

Jonas's mind was awhirl when he finally awoke. His eyes wouldn't focus and his head throbbed in pain. Jonas was mildly surprised that he was alive. He was also astonished to see that he was warm. How many weeks had it been since Jonas had felt warmth?

"Where am I?" Jonas attempted to ask as a tall woman approached him.The wordssounded like a garbled strand of noise.

She looked at him awkwardly and turned away. Jonas soaked in his surroundings and saw that he was neatly tucked into a snug blanket. Beside him were shelves of books and rich uncolored tapestries. Jonas remembered his loss of color and a deep sadness filled him. Heaving a sigh, Jonas wondered if Gabe would see color as he grew older.

"Gabe!" Jonas shouted, causing the lady to jump. She turned quickly to him.

Jonas was suddenly in hysterics. "Gabe! Where is he!" Jonas made hand motions of cradling a baby in his arms.

The lady looked at him as if he had gone mad. She ran out. Jonas was confused and momentarily stopped his wild shouting. Pounding feet sounded outside the door. Another woman came in with the one that had previously left. She was in her early twenties with brown hair tied back into a loose bun.

"Is that how you treat someone who's just saved your life?" the new lady asked loudly "By shouting like a lunatic!"

"Where is Gabe!" Jonas asked quickly. "Is he safe! What happened after I passed out?"

Her rosy cheeks lost their flustered (what would have been red) tone as his words reached her ears. "Your _Gabe_ is fine. He is- or was- sleeping until you started shouting your head off."

Jonas let out a sigh of relief and slumped back on the pillows. The lady with the bun sat down in a plush chair and crossed her legs elegantly.

"After we found you bleeding on Marcy's sled, unconscious,Shara herebrought you into my house. What a surprise we got when we found a baby, this Gabe you speak of, clinging on to you for dear life. We immediately administered a medicine to him, and he recovered a week or so afterwards… However, _you_ my friend have been hanging on to life by a hairfor the past two and a half weeks! It was unexpected that you survived under such harsh conditions. You must have had great motivation."

She stood and paced over to his bedside. "Greetings….." she frowned. "What did you say your name was?"

"Jonas," replied Jonas solemnly as he looked into her fiery eyes.

"Yes Greetings Jonas," she turned to go out the door. As an afterthought she added, "You may call me Rosemary."

Jonas sat up bolt straight. Rosemary! Could this be the same Rosemary that the Giver had so lovingly talked about? The laughter that had been stifled by true lonliness?_No, _Jonas thought. _The Giver saw Rosemary's release. It must be coincidence. _

_Then again… _Jonas pulled forth his memory of when he had first learned of Release.

Jonas's head was still unclear. "How old are you?" Jonas asked remembering that the real Rosemary wassupposedly ten years older than he.

Rosemary stared inquisitively into Jonas's eyes. "I do not remember."

_A lie_, Jonas thought. Jonas knew she was holding back the truth by the way her stance had shifted uncomfortably.

"Get some rest Jonas," she said sternly and exited the room. The other lady, Shara,had picked up a broomand, wearing ascowl on her face, she swept the wooden floorboards.

Jonas had no room for sleep. When Rosemary had left the room, he beckoned the tall lady towards him.

"Where does Rosemary come from?" Jonas asked in a hushed voice.

A dark secretive look crept across the woman's face. "From Elsewhere."

Hi reviewers! It's up to you to tell me how well I write! Include what you liked (so far) and what you disliked, so that I may improve upon my epilogue to The Giver. 


	2. Unexpected return

Next section……… Disclaimer: Disclaimers are over rated.

"Well Jonas?"

"Huh?" Jonas snapped back to the conversation that he was supposed to be participating in.

Rosemary rolled her eyes and sighed. "Teenage boys," she muttered in a hopeless grumble.

Jonas didn't know what teenage meant but he knew it wasn't said with a positive connotation.

"I apolo-" Jonas caught himself. He continued hurriedly, "Sorry, I guess I'm tired."

She eyed him suspiciously before saying evenly, "I wanted to know where you and Gabe came from."

Jonas sighed. He knew she would ask this sooner or later. He wore a frown at the memory of the community. Living there had subjected him to internal torture. Yet, running away, as he did, left a gaping yearning hole in his heart.

"Jonas, I need to know," she urged. "Why did you ask my age? Why did my name frighten you so?"

Jonas had avoided the topic for days but now it seemed to confront him in a rushing front. He looked down. _Don't cry, _thought Jonas to himself. _Leaving was for the best._

"The Community," sputtered Jonas. Those words said it all for him. Rosemary gasped. Jonas saw recognition of the word flash behind her pale eyes. Was it sadness, anger, or yearning that Jonas read on her face? She turned and looked up.

When she twisted back to him, her face was austere, stone hard. "You cannot stay here. Wandering away from the community was a dangerous act on your part, let alone taking your brother. I will drive you back tomorrow. If you are lucky, you will not be released. I will say that I found you by the river and that I nursed you back to health."

Jonas was horrified. Was this some warped joke? There was NO way that he could go back. "Rosemary NO! You don't understand what it's like living there!"

She looked emotionless. "It's a perfect community devoid of fault. You should go back immediately."

Jonas turned. This was not the Giver's Rosemary. He had no intent of going back to the community.

"Jonas" her stiff manner held.

"Why must I return when you obviously didn't?" Jonas glared at her.

"What?" Rosemary looked ashen. Her stern façade faltered. "What have you heard about me Jonas?"

"I heard that you came from Elsewhere. To me, this IS Elsewhere! So you must have come from a community! Why didn't _you_ return? Hmm?" Jonas didn't mean to get upset but he wasn't going **anywhere** without an explanation!

"Jonas… it's complicated..." she said in a reluctant voice. "You wouldn't understand."

"Oh no! Not me! Traveling through cold and pain, how could I know? Starving myself so Gabe could eat whatever food we found, leaving the only people I grew up with and loved, not knowing if I would live the next day- that's nothing compared to what you've experienced!" sarcasm spat from Jonas like venom.

"Well, in reality," she said blatantly, "no, it's not."

…………..

End of chapter. Thanks to my one reviewer (Cylo) so far. lol I feel loved.


	3. is it her?

Ch 2 I suppose, lol

"Jonas, it's hard to explain. When I was little I thought I was happy. I had two wonderful caring parents. My father seemed too be very profound towards everything and my mother was lighthearted and easygoing. I was told that I took after her joyous personality. I always saw things in a positive manner. I grew with diversified interests. When I came to the Ceremony of Twelve, I was chosen to be… The Receiver of Memories," she looked over to see Jonas's reaction.

Jonas was shocked. This was too much a coincidence! It _was _the Giver's Rosemary! It had to be!

"Ah, I see you've heard of the position," commented Rosemary grimly, taking Jonas's shock for ignorance. "It's a position of great honor to be the Receiver of Memories." She said the words hollowly devoid of sincerity. "What happened is that I received… memories. But the memories felt real. Through these transmissions, I developed a deeper meaning of life…" Words came uneasily to her.

Jonas opened his mouth to speak.

"I know, Jonas. It's not a very adequate description. It's just words hardly express the feelings I've felt. I've experienced things you will never understood."

Jonas finally burst out, "The Giver's told me all about it!"

She looked surprised. "Who's the Giver?"

Jonas was puzzled. How could she NOT know who the Giver was?

"Your father!" Jonas voiced aloud.

"What are you talking about? Our village called my father 'Teacher.'"

"But your father is the Giver!"

"Jonas! What are you blabbering about!"

Suddenly it clicked. Rosemary never called her father 'The Giver.' That was a name that Jonas and the old man had thought up together. She probably called him pa or something.

"Your father was the previous Receiver of Memories," Jonas explained hoping he was correct in this assumption.

Rosemary looked questioningly bewildered. "How could you know?"

"Because," Jonas whispered quietly, "I was the next Receiver of memories after you."

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Hey guys! I like to leave my stories short and readable. I post consistently though so I think its ok. lol

Relax and enjoy CaraS


	4. Aftershock

Ch 3….. long chapter sigh

A staggering silence filled the room. It was interrupted, however, by Gabe's monstrous giggle at the expressions on Jonas and Rosemary's face. Rosemary had her face contorted in surprise, wonder, and confusion. Jonas had an exasperated guilty one on his face. Both looked ridiculous. Gabe was hysterical.

"Y-y-you too?" Rosemary managed to verbalize.

Jonas nodded solemnly as Gabe's giggling continued. "I ran away. I took Gabe with me," at hearing his name Gabe calmed down. "That's why I cannot go back under any circumstances."

"I ran away to release the memories of old into the community. I was hunted for weeks afterwards. I knew if I could just reach"Jonas stopped. Where was he? He was in Elsewhere, yes… But where was 'Elsewhere'?

"if I could just reach _here_ that I would be safe," Jonas explained. "What do I call this place Rosemary?"

"You ran away? Like I did? How did you escape?" Rosemary quizzed. "Call it Verita." She added, like it was an intrusion on the _real_ conversation.

Jonas told her the long story of his escape with Gabe. He told her about how he used memories of cold to keep them hidden from the airplanes. He told her about his father and how awful it was to see him murder a newborn child. They relived his tragic experience until Jonas stopped abruptly.

"How did **you **escape? I was told you applied for release and that you injected yourself," Jonas remarked awkwardly.

Rosemary nodded. "Yes, to keep them from suspecting that I was alive, I applied for release. I didn't know how to avoid the search planes and the only other way to get out of the community was through release. As much as I loved my dad, I couldn't tell him of my plans because I knew he would object.

"_Things had been that way for ages, back and back and back_…" she quoted in a low resounding voice- an obvious imitation of her father's infamous line.

Jonas almost laughed, "Things have changed. He has finally seen the truth of things and actually helped me to escape. Speaking of escape, why did you want to go away? What made you see the conspiracy of the community?"

"Jonas I was lonely. No one knew what it felt like to be me. I was so alone. I started getting angry at society for not even knowing the depth of the own words that they spoke. Talk about precision of words!

"It happened on a special day. They were releasing a former elder that I had grown attached to. He wanted me to be there for his release. I was very happy for him. (I still had no idea that release was in fact a euphemism for murder.) I sat quietly through the ceremonies and toasted him after the life telling. He glowed with happiness. I could see that this was the closest thing to emotion that the community had. And then he was escorted into a room. I wanted to go in. I wanted to see where he was going. I promised him that I would see him off. As Receiver of memories, I had that right. I went in.

"I entered an immaculate white washed room. In it, there was a man dressed in a sterile uniform with a wide grin on his face. 'Time for your Release!' cried the man in a singsong voice. They took hold of the former Elder and sat him on the table.

"'Now take this injection,' they whispered to him, 'and you will be Elsewhere in no time!' He shrugged happily and waited for the injection. I became impatient. When was he going to be released? Shots weren't interesting in comparison to the mystery of what happened afterwards. I waited. It looked like the Elder was going to sleep; as they often tend to do. I shook him. I told him to wake up so that he could go to Elsewhere. He didn't move. He didn't breath. He did nothing. He was dead. When I asked what had happened they told me he was _Elsewhere_. From then on I saw the truth of Release," tears ran down Rosemary's face.

Jonas wept as well. He remembered the innocence of the little baby as his father poisoned it and tossed it in a trash bin. Tears of sadness and relief flooded down his face; relief that Gabe would not experience that dreadful fate. The two of them were comforted by each other's presence. Each knew what it was like to truly live, with the ups…. and the downs. Each knew what it was to lose and each felt emotion indescribable by mere words. So both were slightly eased as they drifted off to sleep that night into a world of dreams……….

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End of Ch 3! Hahaha! There's more coming don't worry. I just like to keep you hanging until my next chapter.

Thanks to all my reviewers! You guys rock!

Preview to next chapter…….

The question you've all been dying to know…..

_How did Rosemary escape? _


	5. colors?

Ch 4- Thanks 4 being patient… I was slow on this chapter….

Jonas went out the next day, bundled tightly in heavy clothes. He wanted to observe this place called "Verita." As Jonas crunched quietly along in the freshly fallen snow, he was abruptly reminded of the Giver. Snow was the first memory he had received. A strong yearning to see his grandfather again blossomed within him.

He wished so hard that he could see the Giver one more time. His input on life had affected him significantly. The Giver had showed him life; to its true extent. Jonas admired the thriving life that surrounded him now.

Old couples were walking slowly, hand in hand along the street. They wore broad grins on their faces. Children danced around them as the elders chuckled at the sight. Small children were laughing and catching snowflakes in their mouths. To see cheery faces once more strengthened Jonas immensely. An unexpected smile reached Jonas's own face. It had finally hit him; he was in Elsewhere! He had made it!

Movement to the right of Jonas had acquired his attention. Some kids were doing a rather unusual thing. They were lying in the snow doing a jumping jack. Jonas frowned.

"Aren't you supposed to be standing up? The exercise is not quite as effective if one were to do it in a horizontal position," commented Jonas to a small little girl.

"Silly!" giggled the girl. Her nose wrinkled up into a laugh. "It's a snow angle!"

Jonas had no concept of what a "snow angel" was and his face must have showed it for the girl collapsed in a whirl of resounding laughter.

"Here, I'll show you!" she took Jonas's cold hand into her warm ones and lead him over to a fresh untouched patch of glittering snow. "Lay down," she commanded in a comically high-pitched voice.

Jonas lay down, surrounded in an icy abyss. He thought back to the time when staying on the ground felt like the most comfortable thing in the world, when death was a welcome release. This time he was not on the brink of death and instead sat freely with the little girl.

"Now move your hands up and down..." she was saying. Jonas gazed at the girl. Her eyes were lit up- she was so innocent and joyful. The youngster's eyes were not black or gray, but rather a pale blue.

Jonas gawked. Her eyes! They had color!

"Watchya staring at?" asked the girl with youthful curiosity. "My name's Carla by the way. You can call me Carry though. Everyone does!"

Slowly not only the girl's eyes had color but her cheeks brought on a tinge of rose. Jonas was bewildered.

"I am called Jonas," he said barely hearing his own voice. What could the returning colors mean? Was the girl special? Or… Jonas's stomach lurched. Perhaps he was seeing colors because something terrible had happened to his community!

"Jonas then! Jonas, you're my new best friend!" Carla said enthusiastically.

Suddenly Jonas wanted to be back at Rosemary's. He didn't want to be with this child nor this snow angel thing. Panic was gripping him. What if something happened to the Giver! He looked down, "Thank you Carry. I'm sorry to tell you that I must be going though."

She looked tremendously disappointed. Some of the sparkle in her blue eyes dimmed. Jonas felt guilty. "But I'll be back tomorrow!" Her eyes glowed and shimmered.

"Where do you live?" she wondered aloud.

"I live with Rosemary at the moment. I got hurt and she helped me get better," Jonas spoke quickly. As the words drifted out of his mouth, a frown formed along her mouth.

"My mama says she's unwanted here. She says I shant go near her less I be punished. But don't worry Jonas, I'll still visit _you_!" and with that dismissive thought, she skipped away.

Jonas wondered what Rosemary could have done to have been treated with such disdain. He put it out of his head as a lamppost turned green. Jonas raced through the streets.

"Rosemary!" gasped Jonas as he halted terrified in the woman's kitchen. She whirled around. "What's wrong Jonas?"

"Rosemary… I - cansee—COLOR!" he said between breaths of air.

"That's wonderful Jonas! I'm so happy for you!" Rosemary hugged him. Jonas was awed by her reaction.

"What does this mean!" Jonas questioned still mystified by her response.

She looked at him quizzically. "It happened to me as well. Why?"

Jonas sat back in a sigh of relief, "I thought something horribly wrong had happened to our... erm…. _other_ community and that maybe the memories had sought me out because of it."

She laughed shortly. "No, no it's perfectly all right…. Hey Jonas," she paused. "I guess you still think a lot about the community, don't you."

"Every day," he said solemnly.

There was an awkward silence before Rosemary turned to enter the bedroom. Jonas's thoughts were still on the community. He thought back on the conversation that they had last night. She had come so close to telling him how she escaped. Now the questioned burned inside him.

"Rosemary," she turned. "How did you escape Release?"

She sighed as if half expecting this question would come. "Come here Jonas."

He came and they sat down in chairs at the kitchen table.

"After I had seen my friend released, I could not bear it. I had to leave; I applied for release. When I was finally admitted into the sterile sanitary room, they sat me down. I asked if I could inject the poison into myself. They weren't to keen on the idea but eventually they gave in; One of them had to use the restroom. Since the camera and a release lady were still there in the room, I stabbed what looked to be my arm. In fact, I actually punctured the table's puffy padding that was next to my arm. Neither the lady nor the camera could tell what happened, because I was blocking their view with my body. I cried out in mock pain as I emptied the syringe. I let the empty tube fall to the ground. I twitched for a second or two and then I slumped forward. The lady obviously didn't know the difference between death and acting so she stuffed me in this flimsy container. After dark, I broke free and took off."

Jonas was impressed. He sat back. The Giver would have been proud.

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Long enough? Gosh! That took 4ever! Sorry I update slowly! However, please (despite this) review! I want your input!


	6. Fire

**Chapter 5**

**The next day, a faint knocking was heard at the door. Jonas was half asleep when he heard the soft pounding. As he sat up drowsily, he listened to the soft scuffling of Rosemary's trotting feet.**

**As the door creaked open, Jonas heard a gasp and a small whimper. Hard as he try, Jonas could not make out the small words.**

**"Jonas! The door's for you!" Rosemary bellowed into the house, her voice reverberating off the walls.**

**Jonas, still in a sleepy haze, wondered dimly whom the person at the door could be.**

**_Maybe its Asher _Jonas thought mildly.**

**Clumsily he swung his legs over the bed onto the cold chilled floor. His eyes opened wide as his feet touched down. Suddenly, Jonas remembered where he was.**

**Silently, Jonas climbed to the opposite side of the bed and reached over to grab a pair of luxurious red socks. Jonas smiled as his cold feet were enveloped once more in a warm tingling covering.**

**"Jonas?" came another call.**

**Jonas scrambled out of bed and pulled on some pants.**

**"Coming!" Jonas replied as he tugged on a tee-shirt.**

**He bounded out of the room and came to the entrance of Rosemary's dwelling. A little girl stood shivering outside at the doorway and Rosemary looked impatiently at Jonas, as if standing there were the last thing she wanted to be doing.**

**"Jonas!" squeaked a high pitch voice emitted from the little girl below.**

**It took Jonas a minute to figure out but suddenly, it clicked, "Carla! Why Rosemary, let her in! It's freezing out there!"**

**A look of disgust crossed Rosemary's face. "She wouldn't come inside, Jonas." She said through gritted teeth. "Apparently, she was perfectly fine waiting for you out there."**

**Jonas looked from Carla to Rosemary and back again. Carla shivered; whether from cold or fear, he could not tell.**

**"Come in Carla. We can make _hot chocolate_,"- it was a drink that Rosemary had given him. Jonas thought the taste was especially warming and delicious.**

**Carla looked up excitedly and rushed in; evidently disregarding whatever mistrusting feelings she had before.**

**"Okay Jonas!" she squeaked. Without another word, she came in and peeled off her coat hat and mittens, hanging them to dry on the coat rack. Rosemary went to the kitchen where Jonas had started to boil water.**

**"Shall I put on a fire?" Rosemary asked inquiringly. Jonas looked up excitedly. He hadn't seen a fire aside from his memory. Carla looked excited too.**

**"We can make smores!" she said scrunching up her nose in delight.**

**Jonas had a questioning frown on his face but Rosemary gave him a warning look not to say anything. His look slid off his face, replaced by a momentary smile.**

**"That would be a wonderful idea Carla!" Rosemary said cheerfully and went to the next room.**

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**With hot cups of cocoa in their hands, Jonas and Carla made their way to a cushy couch by the fire. The fire captivated Jonas. The dancing swirl of colors, all bouncing and bright, filled Jonas with emotion. He watched as it crackled and popped and sent the pleasant smell of burning wood into his nostrils.**

**Rosemary came in with Gabe and he merrily gazed into the fire, clapping when it made a noise. Rosemary laughed gaily and a glimpse of fire twinkled in her eyes. Jonas smiled and sipped his cocoa. Outside a group of carolers were forming.**

**_This is how family should be, _he thought_, warm, happy, and snuggled up by the fire._**

**And as Jonas was taught how to make a smore, with happy Gabe clapping, Carla giggling, and Rosemary smiling, the carolers started to sing… And Jonas found himself humming to the song he didn't quite know, with people he didn't _quite_ know, and he found himself feeling as cheerful as the fire before him.**

**(The End)**

**Hope you guys liked it**


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